Well today I’m excited to announce something that has been years in the making:

An Integrated Life : Practical tools for your Faith, your Home and your Work

An Integrated Life is an 18 lesson audio course (think a podcast that you can keep coming back to!) outlining a framework for you to grow deeper in your faith, take authority in your home, and gain clarity in your work - all for the kingdom of God.

And most of all, this course is about integrating your faith, home and work to work beautifully TOGETHER.

You can learn all about it here.

It will only be available for 2 weeks (until July 13th!), as I am preparing to welcome our 4th baby in just 4 more weeks and will be taking a 6 month work and social media break after that. 

Here’s what is included:

There are 18 audio lessons (think podcast meets short audiobook meets online course!)

• 6 Lessons on Faith

• 6 Lessons on Home

• 6 Lessons on Work

• A full Workbook for you to complete as you listen

You can buy each set of lessons separately, and I’ll be going over whats in each over the next few days. Or you can buy them all together! 

I have been SO excited to release this course. I feel like it’s truly a representation of my heart, life, and work. I begin each lesson with Scripture, and I talk about my faith in Jesus in almost every lesson. I share practical ways we run our home, and my favorite tools to work effectively with a clear vision.

I’m so grateful to finally be able to share it with you!

It’s basically my heart meets my podcast meets my life meets an online course.

Can’t wait to hear what you think about it!

Yes, it’s happening again! The Contentment Challenge is happening January - March of 2020, and you are invited to join in!

Many of you have been asking me if I’m hosting another Contentment Challenge, and the answer is yes. I’ve found, for me, it’s been life giving to do this once a year. (If you had told me that the first Contentment Challenge, I would have been like HECK NO!) But it’s amazing the work God has done in my heart, and so many of yours as well.

Like this message I got via instagram, just this week:

“I stumbled across the contentment challenge… it changed my life, and in particular, my marriage. Forever grateful.”

Will I do this every year for the rest of my life? Probably not. I’m not gonna be legalistic about it! But right now, in this material-driven culture, and with 3 little kids, I’ve found that it grounds me, again and again.

But let me back up a bit, for anyone new who might be reading.

What is the Contentment Challenge, you ask? Great question!

The Contentment Challenge

“I will give up shopping for clothes, accessories, household decor, and ‘stuff’ for three months, to focus my heart and mind on the root of true contentment. I will actively pursue fulfilling activities that will replace my addiction to material things.”

Where did this idea come from?

Well, you can listen to the whole story here. But here’s the story in a nutshell:

After paying off our house back in 2012, Will and I accomplished a huge financial goal we had sacrificed and worked for. Weeks afterwards, we began arguing about money wayyyy more than we ever had when living on a tight budget. I thought I could shop at Whole Foods and Anthropologie and do all the things I had sacrificed, and went over budget for 3 months straight. Sorry, Babe.

Then, I spoke at Making Things Happen, and God began to whisper the word “contentment” in my heart. “Nancy, are you really content? with just Me? or do you always have to buy new things?”

I felt a tugging on my heart to give up shopping for 3 months. After fighting the Lord in my head and heart for 2 days straight, I finally gave in. To do this well, I planned it out and created the Contentment Challenge, and it changed my life.

So if you’re curious, I created some guidelines that help guide the 3 months of no shopping and set our hearts straight. I hope this is helpful to you! You of course can make it your own, but I encourage you - pray about it. Consider it. And let God do a work in your heart, life, and finances that you never knew was possible.

The Guidelines:

• For the next 10 days, your homework is the following: prepare your heart, organize your closet, and make any necessary purchases that you might need during these months. (This is not a last minute shopping spree! This is one final trip to the store for items you will need, and the opportunity for you to say your goodbyes to Target.)

• Choose 1-3 inspiring books to read during this time. I would recommend any of the following: Seven, Weird, The Celebration of Discipline, 1000 Gifts, Essentialism. I’m planning to read one book (because newborn life): Cozy Minimalist Home. (Feel free to leave additional recommendations in the comments!)

• Gifts are okay! If someone gives you a new dress or piece of decor during that time, receive it graciously! If you need to buy someone else a gift, by all means, do so. The point is not to be rude, but to learn more of ourselves and the Lord.

• Necessities are okay! If you drop and break your phone, please go get a new one! If you lose your glasses, buy a new pair. Just don’t start justifying new purchases for items that you already have. (“I really need this bathing suit, even though there are 8 in my closet already.”)

• Food: please buy food for yourself and your family :). From my experience, this is a good time to stop grocery shopping at Target and instead choose a grocery store. Some who have done the contentment challenge have chosen to use this as a time to forgo eating out. If you eat out all the time, maybe it’s best for you to limit it to 2x a month. I’ll let you decide what you want to do here!

• You must actively pursue something – anything – that replaces your tendency to buy stuff. Begin thinking about something you love or a hobby you’ve always wanted to do, and make preparations to actually do it. (Reading and Running are my go-to hobbies!)

•••

If you’d like a little more information about the Contentment Challenge and how to prepare for it, download our FREE extended guide below! You’ll also get monthly emails once the challenge starts in January for accountability and encouragement!

Gosh I can’t believe I’m really typing this.

After 12 months of prayer, seeking God’s voice, and coming to experience abundant peace,

I’ve decided that it’s time to close the doors of Nancy Ray Photography.
2019 will be our last year serving weddings and families as a team.
Cue the tears! 😭

I know this news might be surprising to you – it’s honestly still a bit surprising to me too! It’s HARD to close something that is good and profitable. It’s hard to close the doors of work that I really do love.

So WHY is this happening?

In short: God has gently made it clear that the season for Nancy Ray Photography has come to an end.

It has been a long season of me praying, crying, seeking, and realizing over the course of a year: God wants me to keep working, but He wants me to do a different kind of work.

It’s time for me to allow Nancy Ray Photography to come to an end, so I can step into something new, and allow others to continue in this beautiful work of wedding and family photography.

The Lord is giving me a new assignment as I step into this new season of motherhood (raising 3 tiny wonderful people!) and teaching (via podcast and online education) that I’ve been feeling a nudge towards for a long time.

I plan to share the whole story soon, but there are a few important things to note, especially if you are or have been one of our clients, that I have explained further on the NRP blog!

You KNOW how much I love photography, love this business, love this team, and love what we’ve built together over the last almost 12 years. And even though I’ve spent a better part of the past few months crying as I’ve come to grips with letting this good work go, I’m becoming more excited for the time and space it will create in the future for my family, and hopefully a platform to teach lessons I’ve learned from 12 years of business.

A friend recently told me that it hurts when you prune a branch that is fruitful and alive, but that’s the only way to let more fruit grow. I’m taking that message to heart. Today I’m full of tears because of this announcement.

Yep, I’m scared.

No, I don’t really know how to be a grown up without Nancy Ray Photography.

But I believe wholeheartedly that God’s voice is worth following.

And I don’t mind sharing my story as I go, even though I don’t have it all figured out yet.

YOU are a huge reason why we’ve had the success that we have. I don’t say that lightly AT ALL. I am so incredibly grateful for you. We have determined to make this the BEST year of Nancy Ray Photography we’ve ever had, and I simply wanted to let you know what was going on and invite you to celebrate with us as we end this work on a strong note.

The GOOD news is that the education / teaching side of this business isn’t going anywhere! I’ll be here continuing to teach about business and motherhood and faith and a number of other topics. I’m just weeks away from launching my podcast, and I can’t wait to continue to share more of what God has put on my heart.​

I am also OVERJOYED to announce that our very own Olivia Suriano will be starting her own wedding photography business beginning 1/1/2020! You can check out her new site here. What a blessing to be able to recommend someone who has the exact same style, quality, and care that I do. (I did train her after all 😉!)

So with a heavy and hopeful and sad and happy heart, I’m excited to let God continue to write my story. The story has always been His anyway, so we’ll see what He does together. Grateful for your prayers and support as I turn a new page and start a new chapter!